Snapler

March 11, 2010

Middle Class Bailout: Celebrating Harry Hopkins’ 120th Birthday with 4 Million Jobs by August 17th.

The middle class needs a bailout for the same reason the banks needed a bailout--long-term systemic risk. If the (much smaller) government during the Great Depression could hire 4 million people in 4 months, why can we not do that today, now, immediately during the Great Recession?

Like the as-yet to be incurred, but already embedded, long-term costs of the Iraq War, the psychological and career trauma inflicted by prolonged unemployment are yet to be felt. But, they are real, they are profound, and they are increasing every day.

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Homeless Florida Couple Gets Married

Although Nan Schrack and Mark Neville have been together since the mid-1990s, years of homelessness, unemployment and health problems have made it difficult for the couple to express their love like other couples might: by getting married.

When Neville approached Jim McNeil, a volunteer at a local church, for suggestions on how to raise money to get married, he had no idea the support he and his bride would receive. McNeil collected money from church parishioners to buy wedding rings, convinced a local hair salon to offer the couple free haircuts and found wedding clothes for them to wear. Wednesday afternoon, in an outdoor ceremony attended by the couple's friends, Neville and Schrack finally said their vows.

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March 10, 2010

Travel Promotion Act: A Win for US Economy and Taxpayers

With unemployment remaining high and concerns growing about a jobless recovery, Congress recently passed legislation that promises to jumpstart travel, a critical sector of our economy. Best of all, this "stimulus" plan won't cost taxpayers a single dime - in fact it will actually increase federal revenues and lower the federal budget deficit.

The bill is called the Travel Promotion Act, and it was enacted with strong, bipartisan majorities in both the House and Senate (78-18) and is on its way to the President for his signature. The Act establishes a new public-private partnership to promote the U.S. as a leading destination for international travelers and educate them about U.S. security procedures. This partnership will be funded by a modest $10 fee on overseas travelers who do not pay $131 for a U.S. visa and matched by the travel industry.

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March 9, 2010

Holland, Michigan, Happiest Because Of Giving Nature?

Despite harsh winter conditions and high levels of unemployment, the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index rates the small Michigan town of Holland-Grand Haven as one of the happiest in the United States. The index ranks Holland as second only to Boulder, Colo. in terms of "well-being," a term which includes the physical and mental health of residents, as well as job satisfaction and other measures of happiness.

So what's making these Michiganites so happy? As ABC News has recently pointed out, Holland also ranks as the second most generous town in the country. Holland residents are committed to regularly giving back, whether it's lending a helping hand to a neighbor or volunteering with a local organization -- and that just might explain what keeps them smiling.

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March 7, 2010

Tom Delay: People Are Unemployed Because They Want To Be

Former House Majority Leader Tom Delay called Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.) "brave" on Sunday for launching a one-man filibuster of unemployment benefits, arguing that they dissuaded people from going out and finding work.

Appearing on CNN's "State of the Union," the Texas Republican said that Bunning's fiscal responsibility was commendable, even if his shenanigans (refusing to allow unemployment benefits to be considered by unanimous consent) nearly brought the Senate to a halt.

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March 5, 2010

Today’s Jobs Numbers Do Not Tell the Full Story of Men and Their Families

Even as the economy benefits from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, or ARRA, and continues to show some signs of being on the mend, today's unemployment numbers continue to demonstrate how badly workers are faring--especially if they are low-wage and/or low-skilled men. In February, those with the least amount of education had an unemployment rate of 15.6% as compared to the general rate which remained static at 9.7%. The unemployment extension that was signed by President Obama earlier this week and the pending jobs bill should provide some relief. However, low-income men are facing serious challenges that reach beyond the impact of the recession and that affect their children and families.

Antipoverty programs are often built around serving women and children, leaving many low-income men out in the cold. Policies focused on children and families must include a greater focus on men, being mindful of the fact that many of these men are fathers who can and do make positive contributions to their children's lives while also helping to lift the economic burden from the backs of low-income women who far too often bear the majority of the cost associated with childrearing. To some this is simply a statement of the obvious. However, many Americans continue to carry negative stereotypes about poor men especially if they are people of color, lack stable employment, face difficulties financially providing for their families, have a criminal record, or possess a combination of these factors.

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Sharing Is Caring

Policy wonks on both sides of the aisle - from Dean Baker of the Center for Economic and Policy Research to Kevin Hassett of the American Enterprise Institute - have proposed Germany's work-share program as an effective, cheap way to reduce unemployment in the United States. Work-share essentially induces private firms to reduce employee hours, rather than fire workers. The federal government and the firm pay a worker a portion of the wages lost due to the reduction in hours worked. The firm benefits because it is able to reduce wage costs without pushing the wage cut onto the worker (who might otherwise just quit and take unemployment benefits) and because it is able to retain experienced workers. Firing is, after all, a blunt response to a drop in demand (it's difficult to fire the irrelevant part of a worker and keep the relevant part).

Resistance to the measure probably results from private firms who see the firm contribution to work-share as a new "tax" despite the benefits they would gain from the program. Although retaining experienced workers is cheaper than hiring and training new ones, these firms probably hope to make efficiency improvements that make rehiring unnecessary or hope to wait out the downturn until hiring and training do not seem so costly. For the currently unemployed, though, this status quo is unacceptable.

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Doing More, Hiring Less

As the flow of productivity and employment numbers stream in, it is increasingly clear that American firms are committed to doing more with fewer people and paid hours. Today's employment numbers meld well with yesterday's productivity numbers. We are seeing firms doing more and more without increasing hours and headcounts. Our employment picture in February was essentially flat. We lost another 36,000 jobs and our unemployment rate held steady at 9.7%. We need to remember that America has to create 100,000-130,000 new jobs per month to keep up with population growth. The snow and revisions aside, our employment picture looks flat despite rising profits and increasing GDP. This is cause for concern. Our economy remains very weak at creating jobs, hours and incomes even while we are in an increasing GDP and profits recovery.

Employment Report:

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Paul Krugman: Democrats And Republicans In Two Different Universes

New York Times columnist Paul Krugman on Friday waxes galactic when it comes to the partisan battles in Washington, writing that "Democrats and Republicans live in different universes, both intellectually and morally."

As evidence Krugman uses Arizona senator Jon Kyl's defense of Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.) who temporarily held up unemployment insurance benefits to unemployed Americans across the country this week.

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March 4, 2010

Bunning Put a Face on Obstructionist, Mean-Spirited Republican Party

Sen. Jim Bunning, the Kentucky Republican who single-handedly delayed unemployment benefits for 400,000 desperate Americans and forced an unnecessary furlough of another 2,000, should be a figure of regarded with wonderment.

The awesome power he held in his hands! The utter disregard for vulnerable Americans he exhibited while wielding it!

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